ScorpioN

ScorpioN is now accepting questions! Submit here: thescorpion@megadeth.com. Before you ask a question, read the SCORPION ARCHIVES and make sure that your question has not already been answered! ScorpioN may not be able to answer every question asked. Please only submit one question per email in an easy to read format. Check back here to www.megadeth.com/scorpion often to see if your question was selected! ScorpioN section is updated every Monday.

07/13/2009

I have been trying to find infromation on these megadeth roadie tapes from around 1990. all i can find out is that they where suspossed to be released as an official 'Life Of..' video but it never happened and copies from the original master and have been floating around and being traded since then. Why has Dave never released this footage I have seen stuff from it and i think people would really pay to see all the cool backstage stuff and soundchecks and all the live performances if it was on a dvd. Hope you get this and can answer my questions.

Some of the footage from the "Life Of" tapes has been released recently. The London Clash of the Titans concert from October 1990 was released in 2007 as disc 4 of the Warchest box set, and backstage footage was released in 2006 on the Arsenal of Megadeth DVD. Hopefully there's more to come!

07/06/2009

Hi ScorpioN,

um my name is Esteban and i'm 14 years old and own every MegadetH cd. A few weeks i discovered my uncle has a original Killing is My Business...And Business is Good! While visiting my grandma I went to my uncle's room as he left when he moved out. Funny i discovered the cd when i dropped my phone under his bed cause i noticed a cd. Curiosity overcame me and checked the cd...I was shocked seeing that cd. The point is...is it rare? and valueable? What do you Think? Thank You!

Hi Esteban,

The original Killing Is My Business cd, meaning the first Combat Records release with "These Boots" included as track #4, is considered rare. It's value is between $30-$40 in good condition.

06/16/2009

Scorpion,

I was checking out the new Headcrusher art and it looked very familiar to me but I couldn't quite place it.=C 2 Then it hit me. It resembles the art from The Keeper of the Seven Keys, Part I by Helloween. I was wondering if the artists was influenced by that album, if its the same guy, or was just sheer coincidence. Either way, it looks rockin!

Rock on
Alex Dwyer

Hi Alex, I talked to the artist, John Lorenzi (United Abominations cover artist and more with Megadeth) about this today. This is what he told me:

"The device in the song and the period in which it was used along with some instructions from Dave Mustaine himself was all I used here. I agree the cloaked characters seem similar but only by coincidence and the fact that they all shop at the same "Cloakery" (I don't think that's really a word.). They could be brothers from another mother but they don't know it yet ;)"

Also, Dave Mustaine recently posted this about the art on the Megadeth Forums:

"This is a Head Crusher. The containers in front of his eyes in the image were to catch the eyeballs as they popped from their sockets.

The robed people were John's idea and represent executioners or a tribunal, I dunno?

Any other artwork pertaining to this song, that is not about this specific device and is specifically about a person in the device while it is being cranked down on his head, forcing his brain to squirt gray oozing brain matter out his ears, and his teeth exploding and all of his head splintering and pulverized as the giant screw is turned over and over; sometimes the executioner would reverse the screw to cause twice the torment, and also hit the skull cap with a hammer to cause more pain.

I encourage you all to look up the head crusher online (you know how much I love to show you things and how great it makes me feel to know that I taught you something) and read all of the material that you can on this. I saw a poster when we were in Amsterdam, and there was a poster for the History of Torture. I tried to see if Dick Cheney was the Grand Poobah emcee, but we took off in the taxi before I could finish reading it. That is when the inspiration came, and I had no idea it was going to be for the Head Crusher. I looked up this stuff because I knew Iron Maiden got their name from a torture device."

06/08/2009

Hi there Megadeth people!

Just have a question not bad intended: why famous bands make specials versions, extra songs for JAPAN? What made them so honored to have that privilege? I mean, most of all the fans over the world should deserve the same treatment because we go to the concerts, buy the albums, shouldnt we? But anyway, it´s only a question not a criticism.

With kind regards from Germany,
Carlos

Hi Carlos,

Bonus material is usually included on Japanese releases because of high CD prices in Japan. Extra tracks on the Japanese pressing are an incentive for shops not to import cheaper CD's from other countries.

06/02/2009

For all fans interested. is there a place to get copies of the chaos comics for megadeth? i know they went out of business in 2002, but there has to be a secret stash somewhere.

- Charles

The original four issues, as well as the special edition issues are available on Amazon.com and occasionally on eBay.com. Also, the official Megadeth eBay store often has copies autographed by Dave and the MegaFanClub often auctions off autographed copies to its members.

05/26/2009

Hi, i was hearing the instrumental "Absolution" of the Disc "Youthanasia" and I realized that it was equal to the instrumental part of the song "Trust", "Cryptic Writings". Can you explain it to me?

Thanks.

Dave explains this in the liner notes of the Youthanasia remaster CD:

This song is an instrumental piece of music that had the front section cut out of it and used in the hit single off of Cryptic Writings, called "Trust". Marty and I were talking about various song ideas and I told him that I had one idea to do a renaissance type song. There are two versions of this song.

05/18/2009

Scoripon,

I have heard that Megadeth had a rare ep out called 'Cryptic Sounds: No Voices in your Head'. I'd like to know more info on it.

Thanks, Brett from East Earl PA.

Hi Brett,

Cryptic Sounds is indeed a rare EP, released in Japan in late 1998, and later as the bonus disc in the Korean version of Cryptic Writings.
It included five songs from Cryptic Writings (Almost Honest, Vortex, Trust, A Secret Place and She-Wolf). All are instrumentals, without Dave singing, and added guitar parts by Marty Friedman. You can find the Japanese CD used on Amazon.com and Amazon.co.jp, or occasionally on eBay.

05/04/2009

Dear Scopion,

I was wondering if there are any websites or videos where I can hear or read from Dave talking about working with Vinnie Collaiuta or viceversa in "The System Has Failed"

Bet regards,
Jose M Gonzalez
Miami, FL

Hi Jose,

Dave spoke about working with Vinnie in
this 2004 interview with Hard Radio:

Bob Nalbandian: How in the hell did Vinnie Colaiuta come into the fold? Being a huge session drummer for the biggest name bands in pop, jazz, and fusion, I find it surprising he would record with Megadeth!

Dave Mustaine: Do you know how badly he wanted to do this record? He's been performing for artists like Sting and Faith Hill, and he has the chance to come in and belt blazing drum tracks with Dave Mustaine...doing lead drums...I mean, come on. I was so intimidated by him, when I first went in I shook his hand and said "I thought you were black." He started laughing, since he's this large Italian man. I just wanted to clear the air and make things fun from the get-go and let him know I'm a prankster. And then we just started recording, I would play air-drums on certain parts and said "do this", but I still gave him artistic license to do what he needed to do. And it was brilliant, he did the whole record in three days.

04/28/2009

Hi Scorpion,

We dont get many metal acts in South Africa, was just wondering and hoping if Megadeth will ever come to South Africa. You guys have a huge following here.

Thanks

Jacques

Hi Jacques,

Dave has mentioned wanting to play South Africa many times in the past, and commented about playing there last week in an online chat: "That is one place I will not feel good about missing out on playing if I retire."

04/20/2009

Hi Scorpion, I read Dave is writing a book. Can you give more details about it?
Silvia,
Barcelona

Hi Silvia,

Dave has been working on a book for some years now. Originally titled "Love And Bruises: Lyrics And Stories: 1981-2004", it was set for release in April 2005, but was never published. Earlier this year Dave mentioned that the book would be coming out in 2010, and went into details about the writing process with Swedens Close Up magazine:

"If you're going to write an autobiography, everything has to be included  the good and happy moments, as well as the hard times. You can't leave anything out. As of right now, we have covered everything up until halfway through the Metallica years, so I guess now is when the more delicate stuff will come.

On the other hand, if a musician writes an autobiography and it doesn't include any sexual perversion or debauchery, then it's not an honest story. I think a lot of people are going to by shocked by some of the chapters. But I have no choice - either I write about everything or nothing at all. This is basically a story of human interest; it's much more than just 'Dave from Megadeth.' There have been a lot of people that have tried to stop me, but they can't. Over the years, I have learned to cherish both my friends and my enemies. So it's a story about a guy that has been lifted up and then kicked down again, and I think it will show very clearly that I never give up."

The book is being co-written by New York Times journalist Joe Layden, who also wrote "The Last Great Fight", which takes readers behind the scenes of what is considered by many to be the biggest upset in the history of boxing: James "Buster" Douglas' tenth-round knockout win over Mike Tyson in 1990.

04/13/2009

What does 'MSGD!', which Dave regularly uses to sign off on blogs, stand
for?

'MSGD!' is Dave's way of saying goodbye after he posts a message to fans. It means: Mustaine Sez Goodbye Droogies! You can find this info and more trivia in our FAQ section at Megadeth.com.

04/06/2009

January, Megadeth performs on The Howard Stern Show. now at the time i really haven't listen to howardstern that much in the 90's because its the same old stuff but still what was he on there for?

Michael D

Hi Michael,

Megadeth performed "Trust" and "Use the Man" at Howard Stern's 44th Birthday Bash in 1998. It was held at New York's Hammerstein Ballroom, and featured other guests David Bowie, Billy Joel and Van Halen. Dave gave a short interview at the end of the show, which was broadcast on the radio, but edited out of the television episode. Topics included Metallica, sobriety and Dave's new daughter Electra.

03/30/2009

Hi Scorpion,

I Saw this video on youtube and I was wondering if it was a real track of the new Record...

No, this is not a Megadeth track at all. The song in the link is called "Stepping Outside the Circle" by the band Shadows Fall.

03/24/2009

Hi Scorpion,

What happened to Dave Mustaine's arm some years ago? I heard the band broke up because of it and that he wasn't coming back, but I see they have been going strong since early 2000. Could you shed some light on what happened?

Jack
St Louis.

Hi Jack, an explanation of what happened with Dave's arm is in our FAQ section of this website. We often have this question asked. Here is what happened:

In January 2002, Dave fell asleep in a chair with his arm in an awkward position, which cut off the circulation to the radial ulnar nerve in his left bicep, compressing it. A compressed radial nerve is commonly called "Saturday Night Palsy". This left him unable to feel or properly move his hand, as the brain could not communicate muscle movement through the nerve. His treatment included four months of extensive physical therapy, as well as acupuncture, chiropractic adjustments and weight training. During this time he was able to fully recover from his nerve injury, as well as tendon damage in his finger he had previously suffered from. After being pronounced 100% healed by his doctor, Dave took on the task of relearning to play guitar, with help from guitarist Ric Flauding.

It's Electric (Diamond Head) performed in 1990 with Diamond Head lead singer Sean Harris on vocals
Auf Wiedersehen (Cheap Trick) performed in 1998 for Tokyo, Japan
Problem Child (AC/DC) performed in Germany on the 25th anniversary of Bon Scott's death (2005)

03/03/2009

Hey scorpion, I am a 13 year old Metal psycho, and was browsing the scorpion archives, and saw that THE ORIGIN OF VIC was never answered.
So tell me, what is the origin of vic, and Why did megadeth choose him as their mascot?

Also: Who would win in a fight?
Iron maiden's Eddie
Megadeth's Vic
Children of bodom's Grim reaper

(in) Formally,
Corpsekiller

Both Daves explain Vic's origin and the song "The Skull Beneath The Skin" in the 2002 remastered Killing Is My Business liner notes.

Mustaine: I saw a cover of a book in a store once and the title was The Skull Beneath The Skin. I designed our mascot around a few religious and pagan symbols, and the lyrics describe someone being sacrificed in a ritual. This is how our mascot became Vic Rattlehead. The guitar riffing is very progressive to reflect the darkness of the song and it's content.

Ellefson: The title and lyrics are the quintessential description of the formation of our mascot Vic Rattlehead. Because of this description we felt it was imperative that the cover art remain true to our original wishes on this new release. Read them now and you will understand our disappointment with the Combat (Records) cover art as it made these lyrics seem almost pointless.

As to which mascot would win in a fight, the Scorpion is a bit too biased on the subject to say!

Here are the lyrics to Vic's song, "The Skull Beneath The Skin".

Mean and infectious the evil prophets rise
Dance of the Macabre as witches streak the sky
Decadent worship of black magic sorcery
In the womb of the Devil's Dungeon trapped without a plea

See thing in agony necrosis is the fate
Pins sticking through the skin the venom now sedates
Locked in a pillory nowhere to be found
Screaming for your life but no one hears a sound
Help Me!

Prepare the patients scalp to peel away
Metal caps his ears he'll hear not what we say
Solid steel visor riveted cross his eyes
Iron staples close his jaws so no one hears his cries

The skull beneath the skin

Now your drawn and quartered your bones will make the x
Symbol stands for poison and it's chained to your head
And as we fold your arms to make the holy cross
We cross the crucifix religion has been lost

The skull beneath the skin

02/23/2009

Hey, I just wanted to know what is the current progress in the new
Megadeth album and if any song/cover art demos are available to the
public. Thank you for reading and I can't wait for the new album.

Regards, Allan

Hi Allan, as of this last week of February 2009, there have been no demos or artwork released yet. This was the latest update from Dave, right before he left for the current UK tour.

"Yesterday, Andy Sneap went back to the UK for a while, as we are preparing to go out on the Priest Feast Tour. This means effectively that the recording has stopped, until we return in March/April.

We finished all of the rhythm and bass guitars, as well as the drums being finished for a couple weeks now, and I think I even heard some acoustic layers.

I want to let ya know that we are going to be taking portable recording devices, like we did last time (that seemed to work out just fine), and finish preparing for the last recordings on "Studio Release number 12."

Everyone is done with their basic tracks, and all of the songs have been arranged. Its just a matter of singing with my voice AND my fingers."

For further updates on the new album, keep checking Megadeth.com for the latest interviews and posts from Dave.

02/10/2009

Hey Scorpion,

I am writing about the song Amerikhastan. I love the way he wrote it. I don't know what is so cool about it but it is just an awesome song. I was just wondering, what is this song written about? Is it about war in America or what? Thanks!

Sam from Colorado

Hey Sam,

Here's what Dave told MTV about "Amerikhastan" on Headbanger's Ball in 2007.

"There's a song on United Abominations called "Amerikhastan" and it talks about immigration and fighting in between religions and stuff like that, it's basically part 2 to "Holy Wars", and one of the lines in the songs says (in particular about the Statue of Liberty) "these are your people, Lady Liberty, pull up your dress today, and tattooed is "property of the USA, a subsidiary of Halliburton", and even though that's kinda ugly sounding, it's pretty much the truth and to me I think truth is a lot scarier than fiction, most of the time."

02/03/2009

Hey Scorpion,

Megadeth is my all-time favorite band and 'Addicted To Chaos' is one of my favorite songs from them, I was wondering what is this song about? The lyrics are really poignant and the entire song is very well-structured.
That's pretty much it, more power to Dave Mustaine and Megadeth!!

Manuel from the Philippines

Hey Manuel,

Here's Dave's response when asked by RIP magazine in 1995 about the meaning of the song:

"The irony of that song is the subject of it is my drug counselor who got me sober. When he said that I would walk alone, it was after counseling me for a period of time, and he said "You know I'm gonna have to cut you loose some day." The finality of it was two puncture wounds in his arm and an overdose on heroin. My drug counselor died. No one's safe from that disease - those who have that disease."

01/27/2009

Hi Scorpion,

I was just wondering why Dave went for Dean guitars and left his beloved Jackson King Vs. The King Vs were the real metal guitars at that time when he first started and they sounded, looked and played awesomely great! Was it a matter of finances, contracts etc...or was it his own choice? If so, why?

Thanks
Keshav

Hi Keshav,

Dave originally left Jackson for ESP Guitars, before switching to his current Deans. Here's an interview from the time discussing why he left Jackson (August 2003 Guitar Word), followed by a press statement from Megadeth.com discussing his departure from ESP.

"Jackson came up for sale a couple times and I wanted to buy it, and then each time the sale was pulled. And then they tried to sell it a third time-I was contacted again by somebody within the company who said they wanted me to buy it, because we'd been friends for such a long time. And while we were positioning ourselves to buy the company, they sold it to Fender, which I thought was a bit disrespectful, knowing that I'm the No. 1 endorser they had. But I let it go.

I contacted Hamer, Gibson and ESP. Hamer is a really small company, so they were going to have a hard time keeping up with what I want for my endorsement, let alone answering the sales orders that people put in because of the guitars I endorse. I talked to Gibson, and they were excited, but they could not configure the guitar to be a 24-fret guitar, so I was kinda handcuffed there.

So I talked to Marsh Gooch, Matt Masciandaro, and Jose Ferro at ESP. They said, 'We have a V, but we discontinued it because no one's endorsing it.' I went into their warehouse and I picked up one of their flying V's - it was called a V350 at the time - and I went, 'Fuck this thing's awesome' and I said, 'Yeah, I'm willing to play this guitar, if you're willing to make a couple of changes on it to make it even better.' So we made some changes with the body, the headstock, some of the inlay stuff, and the knobs and electronic configuration.

They only had 2 knobs, and I wanted to have the separate volume knobs, a tone knob, and a three way position pickup selector. And I wanted to make sure my fingers could reach the volume knobs with my palm on the bridge. Everything is the same as the Jackson Y2KV was - it's the ebony fretboard, 24 frets with the small fret wire, and it's got the basic dot inlay, except that the first fret's got an 8Ball, because the guitar's called the DV8. The pickups are Seymour Duncan's, the Jeff Beck humbucker in the bridge, and the Jazz in the neck. They got it sent back out from their builders last week, and I picked it up two days ago in their office. I was like, 'Fuck this thing's awesome!' I told them, 'If there was any doubt from anybody of why I went to ESP, just hold one of these fuckers.'"

Megadeth.com Press Statement:
12/6/2006

"After two successful years, I have decided to leave ESP guitars. This was a business decision and had nothing to do with the guitars or the manufacturing of the guitars, and I wish the staff of ESP, both in the USA and in Japan and Korea the very best of health and prosperity.
Meanwhile, I am taking my Classic Metal V known formerly as a Jackson King V1 or an ESP DV8, and my new guitar design presently known as an Axxion, which was the recipient of the Gold Award from Guitar World Magazine for 2005 for new guitar designs with me.
I will also be re-introducing through my new endorsement many special models, including re-issues of my old models from over the span of my career, as well as some retro V shapes, similar to the formerly known Jackson Y2KV or a Gibson Flying V."

01/12/2009

Hi Scorpion,

When Dave was in Metallica, did he have any Megadeth songs written, besides the obvious Mechanix. And if so, which ones and did he ever bother to show James or anyone else in the band?

Thanks, Chris J.

Hi Chris,

Dave wrote his first Megadeth song after his time in Metallica. You can hear the famous story from Dave himself, by visiting www.AskDaveMustaine.com and typing in "megadeth".

12/29/2008

Hi Scorpion,

Back about 6 months ago I heard what had to be the most hilarious song Dave has ever played. I'll call it "Kill the Wabbit", you'll know what I mean. I was wondering when he got the idea for it, why he did, and if there are any official releases of it.

Legends live onstage, Gods die on it!

Aaron from Commiskey, Indiana

Hi Aaron,

"Kill the Wabbit", released in 1994, was not performed by Dave or Megadeth, but Mark McCollum, aka Ozzy Fudd. It was released officially, on Rhino Records "Dr. Demento's 30th Anniversary Collection: Dementia 2000".

12/16/2008

Hi Scorpion,

I heard somewhere that the original video for A Tout Le Monde was banned from MTV. I've seen the video and think its cool. Is this true, and if so could you shed some light on why?

Alister

Hi Alister, yes this is true. Dave Mustaine wrote about this on the Megadeth Forums in March of 2007. Here is what Dave had to say:

"A Tout Le Monde", as most of you know, and all of the know it alls know, was from Youthanasia.

The video was banned, the single was shelved, and without your loving support of a truly beautiful song, it would have died.

MTV banned it because they said, "it was a song about suicide," as did many people, but why would the line, "I'd love to stay with you all be in there? It would need to say something like, I want to die, right?

And I had a manager at the time that was told along with me by MTV not to use Director Wayne Isham because we had used him too much; odd request, but I heard them loud and clear.

Of course management didn't listen and tried to slip it in to MTV under a pseudonym and MTV flipped. They are/were pissed at me for something I didn't do and I would be ok if it was something I did, but I told the manager, and David Ellefson can attest to this, NOT to use Wayne.

Their solution was to ban the $300,000+ vidi, and radio in America was following MTV very closely at the time, still do to an extent, and did not play the single.

The song was left at the altar. I got sent a bill.

11/18/2008

Scorpion,

I love the song Tears In A Vial and was wondering what specifically Dave was talking about in the lyrics. I'm interested in knowing what he loved and gave up for something he loved even more.

Chris

Hi Chris, Dave is talking about giving up playing music to be with his family.

"This was one of the first ones I wrote after I broke up Megadeth. For a man to walk away from a multi-million dollar franchise just because he is not happy- he's got to be very unhappy. One of the lines is 'Forced to look deep in the mirror and face who I really am/now it's just me because I can't afford you.' that tells you some truths."

11/10/2008

Scorpion,
I found a link on youtube (Sorry), but it says Megadeth, Bodies left behind. The majority of posters say it was a bonus track on UA,is this true? I will include the link incase you want to hear it. www.youtube.com/watch?v=h16ge2qQ8QE :-) ..............Thank you,
Chris

Sorry Chris, but the song in the link you provided is not Bodies Left Behind. It is actually a tribute to Megadeth made by one of our forum members. Bodies Left Behind, which was to be a bonus track on United Abominations, remains unreleased.

11/04/2008

Dear Mr. Scorpion,

i have always wondered which MEGADETH songs Kerry King played in his short stint with megadeth...
was it songs like rattlehead and killing is my buisiness.
please enlighten me on this very mysterious subject...

thanks

-Richie

Hi Richie, this was the main setlist (in order) from the shows Kerry first played in Megadeth:

Later on, The Conjuring (originally Conjure Me) and Good Mourning/Black Friday were added.

10/28/2008

scorpion,
I have a 2 part question for all the band members
what is your fav megadeth song to play,and why?
and 2,what songs would you love to play live but never get to, due to album release fan demand and such
barry yeager
droogie
philly,pa

Barry, I took your question to bassist James LoMenzo. James replied to both parts...

1. I like "Darkest hour", It's big sounding and I like the emotional content of the song. There's always an amazing cheer from the crowd when we hit those first chords.

2. Hi barry, great question. I'd love to play "Play for Blood" and "United Abominations" from the last album. You know we're always dealing with set time constraints, makes it hard to squeeze everything we'd like to in ...you know you gotta play the hits!

10/20/2008

dearest scorpion,
I have a 2 part question for all the band members
what is your fav megadeth song to play,and why?
and 2,what songs would you love to play live but never get to, due to album release fan demand and such
barry yeager
droogie
philly,pa

Hi Barry, Scorpion took your questions to Megadeth's new lead guitarist, Chris Broderick. Chris had this to say...

What is your fav megadeth song to play,and why? Right now it's Hangar 18 because first and formost it's a great tune, but also because of the dueling solo's that Dave and I have.

and 2,what songs would you love to play live but never get to ,due to album release fan demand and such. For me I would have to say, Five Magics and Train of Consequences (both are awesome tunes).

Take care, Chris.

10/16/2008

dearest scorpion,
I have a 2 part question for all the band members
what is your fav megadeth song to play,and why?
and 2,what songs would you love to play live but never get to, due to album release fan demand and such
barry yeager
droogie
philly,pa

p.s thanks so much for all the updates on your ongoing construction of the new studio,
the fans appriciate it and I know I do as well , and I know it will give you more comfort and creative control in making the very best albums possible.
Congrats Dave on everything Megadeth, NWCB, INC, and all your other ventures..your generosity and kindness knows no bounds...

Hi Barry, Scorpion took your questions to Megadeth's drummer extrodinaire, Shawn Drover. Shawn was good enough to give us an answer...

1. My favorite Megadeth song to play live is "Wake up Dead" as it was the 1st video I saw of Megadeth back in 1986, and has been my favorite Megadeth song ever since.

2. The song I would love to play live but have not yet is "The Conjuring", I just think it is a fantastic song all around - Nice and violent, just the way I like it.